Twenty-five years have come and gone but Camp St. Louis of the St. Louis Parish church near Moose Lake is still standing.
On July 29, a special evening mass followed by a pig roast and potluck dinner was held at the camp to celebrate its 25th anniversary. Seven priests from the diocese of St. Paul, a district consisting of 53 parishes including Bonnvyille's St. Louis Parish church, were in attendance along with current and former camp team members and camp attendees.
“It has really developed into a very nice youth camp,” said Father Rene Realuyo of the camp's progress while noting that it is one of the few religious camps that remains in the area.
Father Rolland Bissonette started the camp in 1988 with a vision of a place where youth could come and develop their faith in God and strengthen relationships with one another. Michele Revoy, one of the original camp “TEAM” members (a group of young adults that run the camp) from 1988-94 and current principle of Assumption High School in Cold Lake, said during the first year they had a lot of work but following Father Bisonette's lead, they were able to find success.
“In those first few years, we worked really hard,” explained Revoy of her early experiences working with the camp. “Father Bisonette had a wonderful vision and so we just followed his lead and everything worked out really well and here we are 25 years later and the camp is still going strong.”
Throughout the course of its existence, the camp has expanded considerably. Now home to two separate bunk houses for boys and girls, washrooms with showers, a chapel for mass and a mess hall for cooking and dinning, Revoy recalled her time spent at the camp when the mess hall acted as more than a place to eat.
“I was still here when the church got moved in…that was a wonderful addition because we use to (do) everything in a tiny little mess hall, explained Revoy. “We would all gather (in the mess hall) for our presentations and for our mass and so the church was wonderful.”
The camp is now large enough to accommodate up to 80 campers, including counsellors, and offers the chance to participate in a number of different activities such as daily prayer and mass and outdoor activities including sports, swimming and campfires.
But besides the opportunity to get away from the busyness of town and enjoy the outdoors, the camp offers youth a place where they can discuss their faith and open themselves up to a community of others who have similar questions about God and the world, something which Revoy believes is essential.
“My personal belief is that it is essential to have a camp like this,” explained Revoy. “A place where young people can gather and express their faith and know that everyone around them has very similar experiences and are feeling very similar things and the questions they have and the doubts they have they can all share that in common. It is an opportunity…to grow together.”
The continual progress and growth of the camp has been in great part due to the help from the community. Both Revoy and Father Realuyo made sure to thank the community of Bonnyville for its ongoing support and generous number of donations, which, Father Realuyo said could help the camp continue to grow in the future.
“I think we are going to continue…The donations and the people are really supporting the camp…we received so many donations from the people, thousands of dollars just so the camp can continue and to blossom and to grow.”
